


XYZ

by carpisuns (maryssaj)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Awkwardness, Crack, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Fluff and Humor, Humor, Marichat, Marichat | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Mild Hurt/Comfort, innocent but awKWARD, not full crack more like borderline crack lol, the ZIPPER IS CURSED
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:48:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22065031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maryssaj/pseuds/carpisuns
Summary: Marinette's clumsiness leads to an extremely embarrassing blunder involving Chat Noir's zipper.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 94
Kudos: 674





	XYZ

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mowmowmice](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=mowmowmice).



> OK so. I have a Thing. About Chat Noir's zipper. I am a huge marichat stan but i hate that people have made it the Sin Ship™️ and i feel like it all begins with thE FREAKIN ZIPPER so i am like anti-zipper skdjknfaj lol
> 
> I wrote this fic for my beautiful lil devil granddaughter (@mowmowmice on tumblr) bc she knows i am anti-zipper and she's always teasing me about it so this was originally intended to be just for her as like an inside joke but i decided to share in case someone else would enjoy it too lol
> 
> Update: i commissioned the amazing @joo_bugss to do a scene from this fic! :D See it in the fic below and check out her art on tumblr and instagram

“Hey, purrrrrincess.”

A pair of green eyes and a mess of blonde hair blocked Marinette’s view of her sewing project.

“Wanna play Ultimate Mecha Strike?” Chat asked. “I’ve been practicing. I think I can beat you now.” He flashed a pearly white grin.

Marinette pushed his nose back with a finger. “I already told you. I have a lot of work to do. Maybe you should actually go patrol like you’re _supposed_ to be doing.”

Chat’s lips slid into a pout. “So you’re kicking me out?”

“I didn’t say that. If you want to hang out here, that’s fine. But I can’t entertain you right now. You’ll have to amuse yourself.”

“Fine.”

Chat sauntered over to the chaise and plopped down with a huff. For a few minutes, he was quiet, and Marinette could focus on her project. She was concentrating so hard on running the fabric through the sewing machine in a straight line that she almost forgot he was there.

“Hmm,” he said. 

Marinette jumped, nearly causing her stitching to go crooked. “What?”

“You seem to be fascinated with me.”

“What? Don’t be—” Marinette swiveled around in her chair and froze.

Chat Noir was holding her sketchbook on his lap. And it was open to a particular page. Full of sketches. Of Chat Noir.

“Nooo!” She scrambled out of her chair. “Give that back!”

“Wow,” Chat said, flipping through the next few pages. “There are a _lot_ of drawings of me. I know I’m your knight in shining armor, princess, but I had no idea I inspired you this much.”

“You don’t!” Marinette lunged for the book.

Chat dodged out of the way and held it high over her head. Marinette jumped, her fingers barely skimming the pages.

“I was just—practicing—poses!” she said between jumps.

Chat’s grin widened. “I always knew you admired my figure. You captured my sculpted abs so nicely.”

“Shut _up_!” Marinette tried to dive for the sketchbook as he brought it down to hide behind his back, but she tripped on the rug. As she lost her balance and tipped forward, she grabbed the first thing she saw to steady herself—the large golden bell on Chat’s suit.

Unfortunately, it just came down with her. Down, down, _down_ —gah, how long _was_ it?—until the zipper track finally stopped near Chat’s belly button.

Marinette stared at the floor, where she had crashed to her knees. Her whole face was on fire.

_Stay cool. This is fine. It was an accident. Just don’t look at him. Don’t make it weird._

_kdsJFLSDKJFL DON’T MAKE IT WEIRD?? IT’S ALREADY WEIRD! YOU UNZIPPED HIS SUIT! AND NOT JUST A LITTLE BIT—IT HAD TO BE ALL THE FREAKING—_

“Marinette?”

She whipped around. Her mother was poking her head up through the trapdoor, gaping. Marinette realized that she was still holding the bell and quickly let go, scrambling to her feet.

“Um, uh, this isn’t—I wasn’t—” 

“It’s not what it looks like!” Chat blurted out. 

Marinette turned to look at him. He was just as red in the face as she was as he hastily yanked the zipper back up by the bell. But not before she caught a glimpse of the sculpted abs he had been bragging about just a few seconds before. She jerked her head away.

_MAKE IT STOP MAKE IT STOP MAKE IT STOPPPP_

__

_Art by[joo_bugss](https://www.instagram.com/joo_bugss/)_

It was taking an agonizingly long time for Chat to finish zipping himself up. The sound seemed to be terribly magnified, filling the awkward silence and making Marinette cringe so hard she thought her soul might have shriveled up inside her. Finally, _finally_ , the bell was back to its original spot. There was another beat of silence.

“So,” Mom said. “Care to explain why there is a half-naked superhero in your bedroom?”

If it was possible to burn your own skin with the heat of a blush, Marinette would already have disintegrated into a pile of ashes. She opened her mouth to explain, but all that came out was garbled spluttering. Chat’s attempt was a little better … but not much.

“Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, I promise, uh”—he gulped and rubbed the back of his neck—“that there is, um, a good explanation. You see, uh, Marinette just _tripped_ … you know ... and she grabbed my bell as she was falling, so it, uh … it was an accident. Aha.” He grinned awkwardly.

Mom narrowed her eyes. “We’ve had this talk before, Marinette. I know that teenage hormones can sometimes be a little overwhelming, but you are much too young for this. Wait a few more years—preferably until you’re eighteen.”

Marinette glanced at Chat, which was a mistake, because he was also glancing at her. Their eyes locked, and for a second she just stood frozen in horror, her flaming cheeks matching Chat’s.

_Please let me die right now. Let the ground open up and swallow me whole. Let an akuma crash through the window and attack us all. Let Hawkmoth himself come waltzing in and tap dance across my bedroom floor. Anything. ANYTHING but this._

“Mom,” she moaned. “It’s nothing like that. At _all_. He’s telling the truth! It was a total accident!”

She looked at Mom, pleading desperately with her eyes.

For a moment, Mom gazed back, a frown creasing her brow. But then she laughed. 

“OK, OK, I believe you. I know you can be a little clumsy sometimes. But I do have to ask.” She turned to Chat. “What are you doing in my daughter’s room, Chat Noir?”

Chat’s awkward grin grew even more strained. “I was, uh … just … just hanging out?” 

To Marinette’s relief, Mom smiled. “I’m glad you two are friends, and you’re always welcome here. But you could use the front door, you know.”

“Ah … right. Heh.”

“OK, I’ll leave you alone now,” Mom said. “I just came to remind you that you told Mrs. Chamack you’d babysit tonight, Marinette.”

“Oh, yeah … thanks,” she mumbled. 

Mom grabbed the handle of the trapdoor.

“Wait!” Marinette blurted out. “Don’t tell Papa. About … what you saw. Please?”

Mom laughed again. “Don’t worry. I wasn’t going to. He isn’t quite as understanding as me, and we don’t want Weredad to make another appearance, do we? Just stay out of trouble, both of you.” She started to lower the trapdoor but then paused. “Oh, and Chat Noir? The zipper stays up. Always.”

Chat's blush deepened under his mask. “Of course.”

As soon as the door was closed, Marinette shoved Chat hard with both hands. “Ugh, stupid cat!”

“Excuse me? How is this _my_ fault? You were the one who—” He gestured down his front.

“Only because you wouldn’t give me back my sketchbook!” 

“Yeah, well, if you weren’t such a klutz, this wouldn’t have been a problem.”

Marinette folded her arms with a huff. “Really, it’s your stupid costume design that’s to blame. Ladybug doesn’t have a zipper. Why do _you_ have to have one?”

“I don’t know!” Chat said. “It’s not like I specifically requested to have a zipper!”

“Isn’t the costume based on what the wearer wants?”

“Maybe. That’s what my kwami says, anyway.”

Marinette narrowed her eyes. “So really, you _wanted_ to have a zipper.”

“I guess! I mean, where else would this go?” He flicked his bell with a soft jingle.

“Right. And the zipper needs to go _all_ the way down for you to have a stupid bell?”

“No, but it would look weird if it didn’t,” Chat said. “It just makes the overall design look more balanced to have the zipper seam go all the way down the middle to match my pockets and the piping around my arms. You’re a designer; you should know that. And don’t call my bell stupid.”

“Yeah, I _am_ a designer,” Marinette said, jabbing Chat in the chest with a finger. “And I can tell you right now that if _I_ were the one to design this suit, there would definitely _not_ be a giant, tacky bell on it.”

His jaw dropped. “Hey! Well, then … I thought Multimouse’s suit looked stupid.”

Marinette scoffed. “Really?”

“No, not really. I thought you looked completely adorable,” Chat mumbled sullenly. “But … I really like my bell. It’s my favorite part of the suit.”

Marinette was about to make a retort, but then she noticed how Chat’s eyes had found the floor. The snarky comment faded on her tongue.

“Really?” she asked. “Why?”

“Because …” Chat swallowed. “Cats with a bell … they … belong to someone.”

His cat ears drooped, and his shoulders slumped. 

“Oh, kitty,” Marinette said, stepping closer. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. I like the bell too.”

He turned his head away. “You don’t have to say that. I know it’s stupid.”

“No, it’s not. In fact, now that you’ve said that, it’s my favorite too.”

Chat’s gaze flickered uncertainly to her face. “Why?”

“Because you _do_ belong to someone.” She wrapped him in a hug. “Me.”

“Bold of you to think you can just claim me like your own personal property,” he said, his voice muffled against her hair. He brought his arms around her too.

“Usually when a stray keeps coming back, they’ve claimed _you_.”

“That’s true.” Chat’s arms tightened around her. “Thanks for taking me in, princess.”

“Of course. How could I turn away such a cute little kitty? Even if he does get me into trouble sometimes.”

Chat pulled out of the hug. “Sorry about the zipper thing. To be honest, I never even considered the fact that it could actually unzip. I’ve never had a reason to unzip it.”

“And you never will,” Marinette said firmly. “So let’s just agree to never speak of it again. OK?”

Chat grinned. “OK. So … about that Ultimate Mecha Strike match …”

“Well, I guess I could take a break from my project. For a little while.”

“Yesssss.” Chat pulled up the other chair and grabbed the controller. 

Just as they were starting the first round, there was a knock at the trapdoor.

“Everyone decent?” came a muffled voice.

“ _Mom!_ ”

The trapdoor opened. Mom was holding a tray of pastries and wearing a teasing grin. “Good. I just thought you kids might want some snacks.” She placed the tray on the floor and pushed it toward them. “Don’t forget, Chat Noir—the zipper stays up!”

She retreated back down the stairs, chuckling to herself.

Marinette’s cheeks burned. Chat had gone red again as well.

“That thing’s a curse,” she said, eyeing the zipper.

Chat snatched up the controller. “Thought we were never going to mention it again.”

“We’re not.”

“Good.”

“Good.”

They finished the match, which Marinette won, and then played three more until Chat finally won.

After he had gone, Marinette picked up the sketchbook from where Chat had dropped it on the floor. She turned to the pages she had filled with sketches of Chat.

And couldn’t stop staring at that _stupid zipper_.

Tikki floated up beside her.

“Don’t say a word,” Marinette hissed.

“Cursed,” said Tikki.

_Cursed._

__

_Art by[joo_bugss](https://www.instagram.com/joo_bugss/)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like the story and you're on tumblr, you can reblog here if you want :3  
> https://chatnoirinette.tumblr.com/post/189991439071/xyz


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